13 know for certain that (A)the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, (B)but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground that the Lord your God has given you.

14 “And now (C)I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that (D)not one word has failed of all the good things[a] that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed. 15 But just as all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you have been fulfilled for you, so the Lord will bring upon you (E)all the evil things, until he has destroyed you from off this good land that the Lord your God has given you, 16 if you transgress the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them. Then the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land that he has given to you.”

The Covenant Renewal at Shechem

24 Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel (F)to Shechem and (G)summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel. And (H)they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Long ago, (I)your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates,[b] Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and (J)they served other gods. (K)Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River[c] and (L)led him through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring many. (M)I gave him Isaac. And to Isaac I gave (N)Jacob and Esau. (O)And I gave Esau the hill country of Seir to possess, (P)but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. (Q)And I sent Moses and Aaron, (R)and I plagued Egypt with what I did in the midst of it, and (S)afterward I brought you out.

“‘Then (T)I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and (U)you came to the sea. (V)And the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. (W)And when they cried to the Lord, (X)he put darkness between you and the Egyptians (Y)and made the sea come upon them and cover them; (Z)and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. (AA)And you lived in the wilderness a long time. Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan. (AB)They fought with you, and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land, and I destroyed them before you. (AC)Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel. (AD)And he sent and invited Balaam the son of Beor to curse you, 10 (AE)but I would not listen to Balaam. (AF)Indeed, he blessed you. So I delivered you out of his hand. 11 (AG)And you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho, (AH)and the leaders of Jericho fought against you, and also (AI)the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And I gave them into your hand. 12 And I sent (AJ)the hornet before you, which drove them out before you, the two kings of the Amorites; it was (AK)not by your sword or by your bow. 13 I gave you a land on which you had not labored (AL)and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant.’

Choose Whom You Will Serve

14 (AM)“Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. (AN)Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 (AO)And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, (AP)choose this day whom you will serve, whether (AQ)the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or (AR)the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. (AS)But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 23:14 Or words; also twice in verse 15
  2. Joshua 24:2 Hebrew the River
  3. Joshua 24:3 That is, the Euphrates; also verses 14, 15

13 then you may be sure that the Lord your God will no longer drive out(A) these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares(B) and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes,(C) until you perish from this good land,(D) which the Lord your God has given you.

14 “Now I am about to go the way of all the earth.(E) You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. Every promise(F) has been fulfilled; not one has failed.(G) 15 But just as all the good things(H) the Lord your God has promised you have come to you, so he will bring on you all the evil things(I) he has threatened, until the Lord your God has destroyed you(J) from this good land he has given you.(K) 16 If you violate the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you.(L)

The Covenant Renewed at Shechem

24 Then Joshua assembled(M) all the tribes of Israel at Shechem.(N) He summoned(O) the elders,(P) leaders, judges and officials of Israel,(Q) and they presented themselves before God.

Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your ancestors, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor,(R) lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods.(S) But I took your father Abraham from the land beyond the Euphrates and led him throughout Canaan(T) and gave him many descendants.(U) I gave him Isaac,(V) and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau.(W) I assigned the hill country of Seir(X) to Esau, but Jacob and his family went down to Egypt.(Y)

“‘Then I sent Moses and Aaron,(Z) and I afflicted the Egyptians by what I did there, and I brought you out.(AA) When I brought your people out of Egypt, you came to the sea,(AB) and the Egyptians pursued them with chariots and horsemen[a](AC) as far as the Red Sea.[b](AD) But they cried(AE) to the Lord for help, and he put darkness(AF) between you and the Egyptians; he brought the sea over them and covered them.(AG) You saw with your own eyes what I did to the Egyptians.(AH) Then you lived in the wilderness for a long time.(AI)

“‘I brought you to the land of the Amorites(AJ) who lived east of the Jordan. They fought against you, but I gave them into your hands. I destroyed them from before you, and you took possession of their land.(AK) When Balak son of Zippor,(AL) the king of Moab, prepared to fight against Israel, he sent for Balaam son of Beor(AM) to put a curse on you.(AN) 10 But I would not listen to Balaam, so he blessed you(AO) again and again, and I delivered you out of his hand.

11 “‘Then you crossed the Jordan(AP) and came to Jericho.(AQ) The citizens of Jericho fought against you, as did also the Amorites, Perizzites,(AR) Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites,(AS) but I gave them into your hands.(AT) 12 I sent the hornet(AU) ahead of you, which drove them out(AV) before you—also the two Amorite kings. You did not do it with your own sword and bow.(AW) 13 So I gave you a land(AX) on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.’(AY)

14 “Now fear the Lord(AZ) and serve him with all faithfulness.(BA) Throw away the gods(BB) your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt,(BC) and serve the Lord. 15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites,(BD) in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household,(BE) we will serve the Lord.”(BF)

Footnotes

  1. Joshua 24:6 Or charioteers
  2. Joshua 24:6 Or the Sea of Reeds